What are you doing this spring? We suggest you get out and about to enjoy the sun, go to the beach or take in some of the hottest EDM festivals in North America. As luck would have it, this issue of Electropolis will feature some of the top raves the US has to offer. And even though some of them are sold out, we’ve provided you with good substitutes and links for more information. So if you have already missed out on the best ones, we really hope you’ll have a chance to attend the others.

No. 1 Electric Daisy Carnival

The Electronic Daisy Carnival is an annual festival-scale rave that’s been a huge part of the West Coast electronic dance music scene since 1997. It became the world’s largest E-music festival outside of Europe”reaching masses of 140,000 attendees at its original LA Memorial Coliseum and Exhibition Park location. Responsible for this extravaganza and many more of America’s top EDM festivals is Insomniac Events. For 2012, they’re throwing a three-day Vegas show, a Puerto Rico show that hasn’t been announced yet and the first ever east coast NYC event. And yes, the NYC show is a two-day rave! Within a few hours of hitting the market, the NYC show sold out. However, Insomniac is looking into the possibility of expanding the capacity of the venue and hopefully will confirm shortly. Click here for the Electronic Daisy Carnival’s official Web site.

No. 2 Ultra Music Festival

Ultra Music Festival is probably one of the most recognized EDM events in the US. Although now sold out, take this as a reminder to grab a ticket or two early next year. Headlining the 14th annual Miami-based rave for 2012 will be Skrillex, Tií«sto, Avicii, Jusitce, Kraftwerk, David Guetta and Kaskade. Because this is one of the most popular EDM festivals in the world, Ultra sold out 150,000 tickets six weeks before the event date in 2011”the first year they started throwing their three-day festivals. If you’re curious about the rest of the 2012 lineup, click here to see more info.

No. 3 Nocturnal Wonderland

Nocturnal Wonderland is another spectacular event that’ll be held on April 27th and 28th in Apache Pass in downtown Texas. This year, there will be forty artists with guaranteed Insomniac-grade lighting and event production quality. Also, if you’re an EDM artist, you could win the opportunity to perform Nocturnal this year via their DJ competition. The directions for entering can be found here along with more info on the festival.

No. 4 Movement Electronic Music Festival

The 2012 Movement Electronic Dance Festival will be held on Memorial Day weekend, May 26 – 28. Although an EDM festival, Public Enemy will be headlining the event in Detroit’s Hart Plaza, alongside the famous Chicago house DJ Lil’ Louis. Closing the event will be the Detroit-based techno musician The Wizard, also known as Jeff Mills. Currently, there’s expected to be over fifty artists performing the event. FYI: This is going to be a rager” last year’s event attracted over 100,000 people. If you’re on a budget, this is the perfect festival for you because three passes are only $75. Click here to see the full performance lineup.

No. 5 Bounce Music Festival

This year’s Bounce Music Festival will be hosting a diverse array of electronic music artists over the entire month of March 2012. Last week, Bounce was in Puerta Vallarta, Mexico celebrating spring break with a main stage lineup consisting of Paul Oakenfold, Savoy, Morgan Page, Arty, Tim Mason and many more. If you missed out on Mexico, don’t sweat”there are several upcoming dates scheduled to be held all over the US. From April through July, Bounce will arrive in Maryland, Indiana, New York and New Jersey. Tickets for these events haven’t hit the market yet, so make sure you keep updated on the latest news here.